12.17.2009

After travel, no matter how much you love it, there is no place like home and a home cooked restorative meal. When I travel I love to discover a place via its food. I have always been impressed with the food of Europe. Austria is a gateway to the East and one finds not only rich, sturdy,and at times decadent food, but a emphasis on health. If you go to any restaurant you will see Kurbis or Pumpkin on the menu. And in these regions like Austria and Slovenia, they love Pumpkin Oil which they drizzle on anything from soups , salads, and meats.Pumpkin Oil is high in health benefits. One doesn't cook with it, but use it as a finishing oil to retain the beneficial properties( rich in vitamins, omegas, good in urinary and prostate health, irritable bowel, and kidney stones). In the United States it's hard to find and quite costly at around $25 a bottle from I have seen. But its available via mail order .Europeans have always adhered to seasonal and local eating which we are just getting enthusiastic about here. Eating this way is not always convenient or affordable. I was lucky to receive organic meat and chicken samples from Greensbury Market.

I'm usually not a huge fan of mail order frozen meats. I will use them if on hand,but not something I go out the way to purchase. Greenbury sent me both beef and chicken. Prior to leaving I made the beef which was genuine 100 Grass Fed Top Sirloin. Just a simple grill with homemade steak sauce from Michael Symons Live to Cook book I won from Feeding Maybelle. It was excellent. The flavor and texture survived the freezing process and was really quite exceptional.

So after resting from a literal 24 hour journey with a long rest in Krakow Poland, where I spent my time looking at the Polish Vodkas in Duty free and buying Dried Polish mushrooms, I reintroduced myself to my kitchen. I took the Greensbury Farm Chicken Fillets, which are just as superb as the beef, and decided to incorporate my Pumpkin Oil and Borowiki mushrooms. A quick simple meal with a nod to my love of European Flavors.

The dried mushrooms are the King of Forest Mushrooms in Poland and emit a rich earthy flavor. If you google Polish Dried Mushrooms, you will find all sorts of sources to order from. Just soak the mushroom in hot water and let sit for 5 minutes or more. Don't discard the liquid, as it can be used in the cooking. I used my mushroom liquid in the boiling of Quinoa, which was a side dish.

In a skillet heat 2 tablespoons vegetable oil. Add Chicken breasts. Cook for a few minutes on each side to sear on medium high heat. Season with salt and pepper. Add chopped onions to skillet and brown with the chicken.Add Thyme and dried Mustard powder. Reduce heat to low medium. Once onions start to brown, de glaze pan with the chicken stock. Add mushrooms( save liquid for cooking rice, Quinoa, etc.). Reduce stock and mushrooms with the chicken. Add fresh heavy cream and cook until reduced and thickened slightly. Plate and drizzle with the Pumkin Seed Oil.